After a really strong first impression over the Titans Tournament, Reid once again impressed and was the star of this Spitfires team. His combination of powerful skating, lateral agility, and ability to combine all his mobility with slick handling was my key takeaway. Hayes constantly used changes of direction and deceptive puck touches to protect the puck from defenders and maintain possession. His physical abilities and confidence to leverage them all jumped off the page repeatedly, as he always had the right move for the situation to escape pressure and advance play up ice or into the dangerous areas. Reid scored both of Windsor's goals, capitalizing on two passes in the slot / net-front area and making no mistake on these glorious opportunities, one of which was the game-winner late in the third. I want to check in on Reid one more time before locking in my next rankings, but he's certainly made his way onto my radar for inclusion in the near future.

Like Dunn, Hayes brought a secondary scoring punch to supplement the Sun County trio. All of my notes on Reid mainly revolve around his success in creating off the rush. His success off the rush came mainly from his combination of pace and puck skills, which he merged to dodge defenders and create space for himself to operate. Upon crossing the blueline at top speed, Hayes was looking for gaps in the defence and was eager to drive those lanes and try to attack the middle of the ice. Most of his success came from this desire to attack the center, as he was always trying to walk in for scoring chances in prime shooting areas or could force the defence to converge on him and then dish the puck to an adjacent open teammate. These sorts of sequences resulted in many quality scoring chances and goals off Reid's actions, and it all spoke to a player who could spot holes in the defence, take advantage of them and create dangerous chances all off the rush. There were moments when he found ways to attack off the cycle and drive off the wall toward the net, but the rush offence was certainly the predominant theme over the Draft Day Showcase.

I've seen Hayes a few times previously, and while I've noted him as a positive contributor, I certainly didn't expect him to shine as bright as he did over the Titans Tournament, and he was one of the few surprises across my initial assessment of the Ontario '09 crop. So much of Windsor's offence flowed through Hayes, and he was the forward who I felt was most consistently impacting the play. There was an impressive combination of puck handling, lateral mobility, and just confidence that Reid combined to pull off some remarkable plays throughout my viewings. He was constantly maneuvering around defenders, pulling pucks around sticks, and for stretches, dominating with the puck on his stick, and it was difficult for his opponents to close him down. Combining all of his abilities together, Hayes was able to skirt defenders to access the dangerous parts of the ice for quality shots or some clever drive-and-dish plays and created so much offence through his eagerness and success in driving the middle of the ice. Evidently, it was a terrific performance from Reid, and it made me eager to watch more of his game to see if this high-level of play continues in future viewings.

Every viewing of the Spitfires this year, Hayes has been the heart and soul of their offence, and that was once again the case. Reid controlled the play whenever he was on the ice, using his powerful skating and frame well to protect pucks and advance play deep into the offensive zone. He worked his magic mainly off the rush and the outside of the offensive zone, relying on these physical tools to create space for him to operate and finding ways to access the scoring areas. Whether it was attacking the middle himself or spotting an open linemate, Reid was constantly getting pucks to the interior for quality chances. This blend of physical tools and creating off the rush has been at the core of my assessment of Reid since the first time I watched him and what has landed him on my OHL Draft rankings.

This wasn't the best I've seen from Reid, but some moments really made him jump off the page. There were a few sequences where he had time and space in the neutral zone and just exploded with a few steps, burned a defender, and won a clean zone entry. Outside of that, Hayes had some quality shots on the powerplay, walking in and unleashing powerful shots off from decent scoring areas.

Reid showed some intriguing tools over the Alliance All-Star Game. He used his reach well, protecting the puck to the exterior and keeping it out of reach from defenders. Having physical advantages is one thing, but knowing how to use it to drive results is what's truly important, and Reid understood how to use his tools. In addition, Reid showed to play with solid pace and an eagerness to drive the middle to generate scoring chances, which was great to see. Hayes notched a goal, picked up a loose puck off a big neutral zone hit and fired home a shot on a breakaway opportunity.